Gonorrhea, an important public health problem and the second most common notifiable disease in the United States, is a purulent infection of mucous membrane surfaces caused by the gram-negative diplococcus Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Although gonorrhea (known colloquially as the clap and the drip) is most frequently spread during sexual contact, it can also be transmitted from the mother's genital tract to the newborn during birth, causing opthalmia neonatorum and systemic neonatal infection.
In women, the cervix and urethra are the most common site of gonorrheal infections. Neisseria gonorrhoeae can also spread to other parts of the body to cause infections of the joints (gonococcal arthritis) and Fallopian tubes, which can result in Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) and ectopic pregnancy. In men, Neisseria gonorrhoeae most often causes localized infections of the anterior urethra. In men and women, Neisseria gonorrhoeae infections increase susceptibility to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. Most commonly, the term gonorrhea refers to urethritis and/or cervicitis in a sexually active person.
Gonococcal infections following sexual and perinatal transmission are a major source of morbidity worldwide. In the developed world, where prophylaxis for neonatal eye infection is standard, the vast majority of infections follow genitourinary mucosal exposure.
Improved therapeutic options for treating gonorrhea and/or conditions involving Neisseria gonorrhoeae activity are needed.